Deer & Deer Hunting Forums: White Tail Deer Hunting Forum

[font="arial"][size="2"]From today's Star Tribune...[/size][/font]
Deer culling continues; still no new CWD cases Posted by Doug Smith Last update: February 24, 2011 - 2:26 PM
[/align] [size="2"]So far, its good news.[/size][/align] [size="2"]Officials have now killed 426 deer near Pine Island, Minn., for chronic wasting disease, and 352 have been tested. None had the fatal brain disease. The shooting of deer there continues, now with the addition of federal sharpshooters, who began culling deer Tuesday night.[/size][/align] [size="2"]The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wants to sample 900 adult whitetails in the area, where a wild deer killed by a hunter last fall was found with CWD. Of the 426 killed thus far, 138 were fawns, which wont count towards the 900-deer tally because they wouldnt be expected to show signs of the disease yet. Theyre being tested anyway.[/size][/align] [size="2"]Federal sharpshooters using bait and night-vision scopes began shooting deer Tuesday evening, but so far have shot just 17 deer, Lou Cornicelli, DNR big game program leader, said at a news conference Thursday.[/size][/align] [size="2"]Its starting slowly at first...as we expected, he said. Some 300 landowners or their designees have been given special permits to shoot deer, and those permits are in effect until Tuesday. Were tickled the landowners are killing deer, but they are really moving animals around, making it difficult for the sharpshooters to attract deer to their bait.[/size][/align] [size="2"]Cornicelli expects the sharpshooters success to greatly increase once the landowners permits expire.[/size][/align] [size="2"]Meanwhile, more than 200 people have signed up to take the deer carcasses for the venison, once tests show they are free of CWD. For more information, or to get on the waiting list, see the DNRs website at www.dnr.state.mn and click on managing CWD in Minnesota.[/size][/align] [/align]

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The state's search for additional evidence of chronic wasting disease continues to come up empty.

None of the 665 adult deer tested for CWD in southeastern Minnesota tested positive for the disease.
Testing is scheduled to end April 1, and DNR big-game coordinator Lou Cornicelli (korn-ih-SEHL'-ee) said the state is unlikely to reach its original goal of testing 900 deer.

The DNR will continue its CWD surveillance into the fall using hunter-harvested deer samples.
The DNR began the tests after a deer infected with CWD was found near Pine Island last fall. The disease is fatal for deer, elk and moose, but there is no evidence it spreads to humans.
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Once again this is showing that we shouldn't freak out when 1 deer test positive for CWD. Wisconsin has a worse case of it and now hunters are rolling there eyes when people talk about it. It's mother nature, it will always have the upper hand.